Beach Soccer spreads awareness on the sand

More than 25,000 people participated daily in the Southern California Beach Soccer Championships in Oceanside, Calif., on May 17-18, 2009. Participants played soccer in the sand, met celebrity guest and champion soccer player Ethan Zohn, and took part in a free soccer clinic. 

But Marc Koehler, managing director of the Beach Soccer Championships and member of Life Thru Sports also made sure the kids at the event were taught the importance of giving back to their communities. Life Thru Sports is an organization that teaches kids life lessons through playing sports, as they learn the values of winning, losing and how to achieve their goals. At the Beach Soccer Championships, Marc chose Nothing But Nets to focus on as an opportunity to spread awareness about malaria and how easy it is to help prevent it. For every goal scored in the championship games, $10 went to Nothing But Nets. In the end, the tournament raised $120!

The event was a great place to spread the word about the campaign, with the presence of Joe’s Crab Shack, the Senegal Beach Soccer National Team (who traveled 14 hours and then won the championship!), the LA Galaxy, Chivas USA, and more than 300 teams participating in the tournament. Thanks to Marc, Life Thru Sports and Beach Soccer USA!